The Daily times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1886-1889, 1887-06-16
WASHINGTON GOSSIP.
HOW THE CAPITAL LOOKS IN THE
HOT MONTHS.
It's Wonderful Flowers-iiow It's streets
Are Cleaned-A story Of j. u. Mclean
for "A Hotel.

Special Correspondencel
WASHINGTON. June 1.-THE dullness OF
summer has fallen upsn Washington. The
president, vacation has thrown "a shadow
over the spirits Of both society AMI business,
and the cabinet ministers whoaronot already
gone are planning their trips FOR the summer
Garland summers at Hominy Hill, or his
country seat. near Little Rock, Ark;
Whitney rusticates at Lennox. and Lamar
stops for a season i'm Georgia and Mississippi
| There are even now not bakers dozen u
statesmen Of national note in the city. Ed
munds left some time ago for Detroit, and he
told me before be went that he intended to
devote a part Of the summer 10 fishing in
| Canada.
I'm the meantime Washington was never
more beautiful than il is now. The flowers
Of the capital surpass those Of any other city
/ in the United States. and our wonderful eli
mate and the generous appropriations Of the
| government push them 10 their fullest beauty
| The White House rose garden, which stands
/ in the lawn between the executive mansion
and the treasury, is a mass Of beautiful bios
SONS Of The choicest varieties, and there are
| enough roses here 10 make huttonlole bOu-
quets for am army Of beaux and bellies. The
/ various government departments have gar
deus connected with the fine grounds sur
rounding them, and these have each q
| skilled gardener % attend % them The
/ treasury front is one mass of choice
/ flowers. and as 90 the Agricultural gardens
/ they areuow clothed in a beauty which would
/ have done honor 90 tl.e Hanging Gardens of
| Babylon The numerous parks of washing
/ ton and the circles and square which y.u
| find at the intersections Of the avenue, AMI
streets are kept up 10y the government. and
/ the flowers are here changed with the season,
500 that tley are full If blossoms from the
/ beginning o. the end of warm weather, from
/ the FIRST crocu-es 90 the last flowers Of 40
vombor.
This country seems o. BE- the paradise n
ro s., and they grow almost wild Negro
cal lns arc iu some parts Of the city now
| covered With roses, and the poorest laborcr
may have the most beautiful flowers if be-
vi. but plant them.
! The ivy of Washington has not been men-
/ Toned as ONE of Dos attractions. but 10 Is au
important ono. Every creeping vine grows
/ hero .xuriantiy. and some of the finest
/ house. are now clothed in green The Uni
/ tartan church looks like "a medieval castle DO
Dos iyycrDwu dress, and the japanese ivy,
with its delicate tracery, is outlined all along
tho red brick homes of the statesmen on
| Massachusetts avenue.
Washington is not, however, as clean in
Summer as in winter. and the streets here are
uow worry dirty The government pays half
| of our faxes. and the city is So dependent on
congress that 10 puts It's best foot foremost
during the s,ious. The many miles 0f wide
streets are, vou Lh0w, covered with asphalt,
which is as smooth a- "a board amt which Viii
NOT soak upa lit ofauythng which fai'sup0n
| il Th... streets are cleaned hy great sweep
| inrmt-1u.- drawn by horses, and so made
/ Chat revolving broom oftwigs sweeps every
| Dir of th. dirt from the middle Of The streets
| to th. cl-eof the curbstone of the sidewalk
/ The streets are sprinked before this great
sweeper goes 10y. and The dirt is turned into
mul before it j, swept After street las
/ been cleaned the wagons 4 the cleaners gather
up the piles of dirt and carry them away ln
| th, winter This cleaning is done almost every
night. ami YOU can then drop your haudker-
/ chief ON the main avenues with "a fair exc
pcctation Of picking it up uusoied 10 is
different I'M the summer. and the best street
cleaner we now have is the rain. a driving
/ rain in Washington does more cleaning than
IN a city where the streets have different kinds
of payemeuts The asphalt will not absorb
o.op ana The water runs of % the sidewalks
and along them 90 the nearest sewer opening.
/ ltras toa torrent IN a heavy shower, but
the bnck payements so absorb every ray of
| Ac sun that the streets ore often dry within
au hour after the rain stops
hear curious story about the trouble
which John r. Mclean is having iu the pur
CHASE of ground for a new Washington hotel
Mclean owns two large houses ON the corner
of Fifteenth and ! streets northwest just
across from John ChambcrIain's club house.
Il is within two blocks Of the Arlington
hotel. within stones throw Of the White
H0us.. and on what is DOW the edge Of fash-
ionullr Washington 1t would be a splendid
/ location r high toned hotel but The
ground which Mclean owns is not enough
for The purpose Just back Of his lots lies
col0rel Presbyterian church, which covers
about 5000 feet # ground For some months
Mclean has been attempting % bus this
church He has offered more than 10 is
worth, and has brought influence 10 bear tO
obtain d. First he proposed to give $1,000
for the property, % allow the congregation
all The material Of which the church is come
posed. 90 buy them "a lot on Sixteenth street
large enough o. erect "a church oi the same
size. and 90 give them an organ in addition
They refused this offer without c0nsidera-
ton He then limited az $4,000. and upon
thcir not Swapping at this ho made am offer
of $4,000 cash. lu the meantime bis mother,
who is % Presbyterian, was much opposed %
his buying thc church. She told john. 10
is said, that De ought not 70 purchase q
'house of God and avn told she vert TO
the sexton and told him that she hoped they
would not sell the church, but that il they
did 10 charge "a high price for It. In the
meantime the church still remains, and the
colored congregation, which Is one Of tho
most fashionable Of the kind in the city. las
not vet decided 90 give il up The ground
which Mclean offered 10 buy for the church
on Sixteenth street is some Of :he best in tie
city, AMI 1t is worth in the neighborhood Of
s. a square foot
THOMAS j. TODD.